Jana Miller is a big fan of Heath’s. When she saw him at a red carpet event in Nashville a couple of years ago, she side-stepped his publicist and ran over to introduce herself — and her husband. Heath and Lee Thomas Miller struck up a friendship, and the relationship is one that went on to shape not only Heath’s new record, Leaving Eden, but also the course of his career.

Miller co-wrote the title track on Leaving Eden, Heath’s third album, and helped the Christian artist rekindle a longtime interest in country songwriting.

“I love country,” Heath says. “It’s what I grew up listening to.”

The country sound, however, does not make its way onto Eden, which is full of faith-laced pop songs including its lead single, “Your Love,” Heath’s current four-week No. 1 song on Billboard’s National Christian Audience Chart.

If the pairing of Heath with a country songwriter seems odd, Heath says it shouldn’t. He’s largely built his career on being a little bit different, and he continues to seek out ways to set himself apart.

“I feel like I’ve continued to push the envelope a little bit,” he says, “and I’m lucky enough to work with a label that lets me do that, and with a producer that helps me do that.”Continue reading →